by Lisa Rayne
How had it taken him days to figure out his mystery woman and Jordis were one and the same? Because his encounter with Juliet had been shrouded in dimness, he’d assumed he’d fixated on Jordis as a way to compensate for not being able to find his mystery woman, a simple case of transference. Jordis had served as a temporary substitute for something—someone—out of his reach.
Now, he knew better. His hope for avoiding an office romance had turned into his greatest temptation to succumb to one. He couldn’t allow that to happen. Jordis was off limits, and he possessed enough strength of will not to let her sensuality lure him into another office romance mistake.
He rinsed his hair and slathered in some leave-in conditioner. After washing with his favorite scented body shampoo and getting dressed, he headed to the office. By the time he got to work, he’d come to terms with the whole Jordis situation. He’d concentrate on solving the mystery of the vanishing discovery documents. Once he got focused on the case, his attraction to Jordis would wane.
So as not to tempt fate, however, he’d avoid Ms. Morgan today. He had a boatload of work to do, no sense pushing his self-control unnecessarily. He needed to leave that walking temptation alone.
Chapter 7
Immediately upon arriving at his desk, Michael delved into dissecting his opponent’s motion for summary judgment. He managed to focus for a few hours and stay away from Jordis, but she slipped into his thoughts before lunchtime. By two o’clock, he needed a serious testosterone detox and headed for his fifth straight two-hour workout of the week.
When he returned to his office, he threw down his duffel bag, frustrated with himself. He circled his desk and stared at the annotated papers he’d abandoned earlier. He needed help to prepare a response to the pending motion. A disturbing correlation existed between facts relied upon in the motion and confidential Metra Pharmaceutical information to which the opposing side should not have been privy. The mysterious disappearance of a box of privileged case documents no longer struck him as a mere filing issue. Something didn’t add up, and he could use co-counsel input to determine what.
Chase pressed him daily to quit dragging his feet about bringing in Jordis, but this case was too important to risk a slipup because his brain was in his pants instead of on litigation strategy. How could he possibly work closely with a woman who gave him wet dreams? He was beginning to think—asshole or not—Covington would be the better choice to back him on this case.
Twenty minutes later, he was still pondering the issue when his mobile phone vibrated the receipt of a text message. He checked his phone. A text from his younger sister queried whether he wanted to join her for dinner on the Plaza. Michael smiled to himself. As a graduate student, Raina rarely had any money and when she did, it went exclusively towards school materials or her wardrobe. What she really meant was did he want to buy her dinner, and since she had selected the Country Club Plaza, she likely counted on dining at a really nice restaurant.
He typed, Sure. Ur treat?
Her response made him laugh out loud: ABSOLUTELY!!! Mickey Ds ok? :D.
After texting Raina his acceptance of her dinner invitation and telling her to meet him by the Bronze Boar statue on West 47th Street, Michael stepped away from his desk with a much lighter attitude. He looked forward to having dinner with his sister. He couldn’t be around her unpredictable energy and stay in a mood for long. She was exactly what he needed to keep his mind off a certain leggy lawyer.
* * *
Jordis’s mood soared with positive energy that mirrored the beautiful winter sunshine. She’d had a productive day at work. The deposition she’d taken in her trademark infringement case had gone her way. She expected to receive a nice settlement offer from opposing counsel sometime next week. On top of that, she’d managed to avoid Michael Remington. By the time the deposition had wrapped up, it had been late afternoon and Michael had been in meetings of his own.
She’d made it a point to leave the building early. She hadn’t wanted to run into him today. The last thing she needed was to be alone with him again—in her office, in an elevator, or anywhere else—so soon. She still hadn’t come to grips with his appearance in her dream. Whenever she’d had a moment of respite today, her mind had drifted to him, alternating between their encounter in the elevator last night and her erotic dream from this morning. It was unnerving.
Those gorgeous eyes of his had haunted her. Wondering where he’d gotten them from, she’d slipped into the Board Room before lunch to peek at the portrait of his father. She’d found her answer there. Austin Remington had been quite the looker. Although he’d been surfer blond and suntanned, his eyes were steely gray. Michael had his father’s eyes. His olive skin tone must have come from his mother.
After her Board Room visit, the warning bells she’d ignored last night had reclanged their message of impending danger where Michael Remington was concerned. Needing to quiet her troubled psyche, she chose to use her early exodus to visit her favorite bookstore. One of the last of a dying breed, the humongous Barnes & Noble on West 47th Street constituted a four-level book palace and in-house café that romanced the bibliophile in her.
She wandered the largest print book collection in the city, idly browsing new releases, picking up selections here and there, and reading back covers until her frazzled nerves calmed. Two hours later, she decided to buy something that would totally engross her but wouldn’t contain any romantic underpinnings. She opted for a thousand-plus page horror thriller about a small town that gets sealed off from the rest of the world by an invisible dome. The novel had been out a while, but she hadn’t had time to read it. She managed to snag a hardcover copy off the clearance table, which ended the outing on an added note of delight. Sliding the novel into her reusable book tote on top of several other purchases, she exited the mega bookstore with a buoyant step and nearly collided with a laughing twenty-something hanging on the arm of . . . Michael Remington?
The look of shock on his face mirrored her own.
“Excuse me.” The twenty-something smiled at Jordis. “I wasn’t paying attention.”
Jordis deftly covered her acute surprise and smiled back at the girl. “That’s okay.”
The young lady was quite beautiful. Long, naturally curly coffee-brown hair hung loose about her shoulders. The fall of hair framed a heart-shaped face from which peered laughing gray eyes. Jordis looked back at Michael. The young lady’s eyes matched his shade almost exactly.
“Jordis,” Michael said with a nod. “What are you doing here?”
Jordis kept her smile going, trying to mask her unease at her failure to avoid him for a full day. He wore black jeans and a black turtleneck sweater under a wool coat, but the casual attire in no way detracted from his overall appeal.
She lifted her book tote. “Gathering some new reading material and enjoying the last few days of the Plaza Christmas lights. Some of us do actually get out of the office at a decent hour from time to time.” Hiding behind sarcasm, Jordis added with a pointed look, “The question is what are you doing away from your desk at only . . .” She glanced at her watch. “Oh my, six fifteen on a work night?”
Michael’s lips lifted halfway when she made a fake gasp of surprise while checking the time.
“You two obviously know each other.” The young lady looked back and forth between them.
“Yeah,” Michael replied. “Raina meet Jordis Morgan. Jordis, this is my sister Raina.”
That would explain the matching gray eyes. Raina didn’t have her brother’s deep olive coloring, however. Her skin was fairer, with only a slight olive undertone.
“Nice to meet you.” Jordis extended her hand.
Raina shook her hand. “Likewise.”
Continuing to look between Michael and Jordis with an inquisitive stare, Raina asked, “So, how do you two know each other?”
“Jordis works with me at the firm.”
Raina gave her a once over. “You’re a lawyer?” Blessed with the unshackled hone
sty of the young and the not-yet-jaded, Raina didn’t bother to mask her incredulity.
“Um, yes.” Jordis had dressed more LA today, but the doubtful look on Raina’s face gave her pause. “Is that a problem?”
“No, but are you sure you work at my brother’s firm?”
Jordis looked at Michael, who could no longer conceal his grin. His eyes surveyed the outfit she had on under her open winter coat. She wore a short black jean skirt with brocaded pockets and seams over black opaque tights that disappeared into black knee-high patent leather spiked-heel boots. A silver chain with several charms attached looped around the right boot at ankle level. A cropped, baggy loose cable knit sweater in coral layered over a shiny silver long-sleeved tee that showed through the holes in the sweater. Medium-sized silver hoop earrings dangled from her ears. Each bangle held two loops linked together so they revolved in opposite directions when she moved her head.
“You certainly don’t dress like any of the lawyers I’ve met from my brother’s firm.”
Jordis laughed, “Well, I don’t usually dress this cool for the office. I try to tone it down so they think I’m as straight-laced as they are. I took a few liberties today with casual Friday, knowing I wouldn’t go home right after work.”
Raina laughed. “I like her,” she said to her brother. She looked back at Jordis. “So, have you had dinner yet?”
“No, I was about to grab something and head home.”
“Why don’t you join us? We were just deciding where to eat.”
Jordis glanced at Michael who looked uncomfortable with his sister’s invitation. She suspected he didn’t fraternize with his associates outside the office. He didn’t really socialize with them in the office. She’d take the hint and put him out of his misery.
“Thanks for the offer, Raina, but I don’t want to intrude on your evening. It was nice—”
“Don’t be silly. You wouldn’t be intruding. Would she, Michael?” Raina eyed her brother expectantly.
“No, of course not.” His voice held an edge that, to Jordis, made him sound less than sincere.
“Besides,” Raina explained to Jordis in a mock whisper, “you’ll help keep me sane. I love my brother, but sometimes he can be a bit grumpy.”
“Hey, you do remember who’s paying for dinner tonight, right?” Michael reminded her with a frown.
Raina grabbed him around the waist and hugged him from the side. “Why you are, brother mine.” She batted her eyelashes at him and dripped sweetness from her voice. “You wouldn’t begrudge me a decent meal because I speak the truth now would you?”
Michael fought a smile through an indulgent shake of his head. The siblings were obviously close. Raina had her big brother wrapped firmly around her little finger, and she knew it.
“You know you haven’t exactly been the best of company lately. Ever since New Year’s Eve—”
“Raina,” he interrupted in a stern voice.
“What happened New Year’s Eve?” Jordis eyed Michael then Raina.
“Nothing,” Michael interjected in a tone that left no doubt he considered the line of questioning closed. “How about we head to a restaurant so we don’t have to wait in line forever for a table?” Michael removed Jordis’s bag of books from her hand and shouldered them himself. “Steakhouse okay with everyone?”
Michael and Jordis both looked at Raina. She shrugged. “It’s fine with me unless Jordis would rather have seafood.”
“Nope. Steakhouse works for me.”
Raina hooked her arm through her brother’s, and Jordis fell in at his other side. They meandered a few blocks west of the bookstore then headed south towards the Plaza III restaurant on Pennsylvania Avenue. Once the threesome reached the restaurant, the hostess seated them immediately at a U-shaped booth. Raina slid into the center of the U. Michael and Jordis took positions on the wings, sitting opposite each other.
* * *
Michael watched Jordis smile at the waiter and give her order. He tried not to be moved by her smile. He wasn’t succeeding. He couldn’t believe he’d spent the day avoiding her, and accepted a dinner invitation from his sister to get his mind off her, only to end up across the dinner table from her. To make matters worse, she looked absolutely stunning. Someone upstairs had a sick sense of humor.
When Raina had voiced her surprise earlier that Jordis worked at his firm, Michael had known immediately what his clotheshorse of a sister was thinking. The fashion diva in Raina had coveted Jordis’s outfit. It wouldn’t exactly fit in at RHM. The lady’s personal flair equaled her professional chic, although the two personas sat on opposite ends of the fashion spectrum. She’d completed the black skirt and knee-high boots ensemble with a high ponytail that rode the back of her head and made her sculpted cheekbones standout. A few loose chestnut tendrils fell about her temples and gave the hairstyle a feminine edge. She looked like she’d stepped off a runway or out of the pages of a fashion magazine.
He thought about her boots. They conjured up visions of whips, chains, and leather bustiers over lace teddies. Not that he’d ever been into that sort of thing, but he had a sudden inkling of the possible appeal.
As if reading his thoughts, his sister said to Jordis, “Tell me about those boots. And where can I get a pair just like them?”
“You can’t,” Jordis replied. “They came from a little boutique on the Santa Monica Promenade in LA. The owner is a friend of mine. She specializes in finding unique fashions she imports in small quantities from all over the world. When customers shop at her store, they know they aren’t going to run into a dozen or more ladies in the city wearing the same thing.”
Jordis took a drink of water. “These boots she discovered somewhere in Europe. She refuses to say where, even to me. What she did tell me was she immediately thought of me when she saw them, and she acquired only one pair—in my size.”
“Cool. They must have cost a fortune.”
“Actually, they didn’t cost me a dime. My cousin Narisa bought them for me last year. She and Lindsay, the boutique owner, conspired to make the acquisition as a special birthday present.”
“Wow. I wish I had friends like that.” Raina sipped her lemonade then gave Jordis a speculative look. “What size shoe do you wear?”
“Don’t even think about it.” Jordis’s expression stayed serious though she appeared to be fighting a smile.
Michael chuckled as he watched his sister pout. “My sister fancies herself a budding designer. She’s been addicted to clothes since the age of three when mom let her pick out her own outfit for the first time.”
“Do you study fashion design now?” Jordis asked Raina.
The food arrived. Raina waited for their meals to be served before she responded. “I graduated two years ago with a degree in fashion design, but I’m still studying at the Art Institute. I’m focusing on art classes right now. I need to improve my drawing skills and work with textures some more. I really want to be able to draw all my own creations, not simply come up with ideas I have to pay someone else to draw.”
“That sounds like a wise decision.” Jordis picked up her fork and started on her entrée.
Raina and Jordis chatted for a while about Raina’s studies, fashion, and art. Raina got excited when Jordis mentioned she had a cousin in Los Angeles who ran her own fashion house and agreed to make an introduction. After a while, Jordis looked over at him, perhaps realizing he hadn’t said much. He quietly looked back at her, his hand wrapped around the beer bottle on the table in front of him.
“Raina, I think we’re boring your brother.”
“Nah. Trust me.” Raina cut into her steak. “If he were bored, he’d definitely say something.”
The corner of Michael’s mouth turned up at his sister’s words.
Jordis’s eyes shifted, and she twisted her left wrist a couple of times out of habit before she rubbed it absently.
“Is that right?” Jordis said, still looking at Michael.
Michael didn’t resp
ond. He lifted his beer and took a long, slow drink as he watched her over the bottle.
After a moment, Jordis heard Raina add, “Besides, my brother is never bored when he has a beautiful woman to look at it.”
Jordis’s eyes narrowed. Her gaze shifted to Raina when she sensed the young lady settle back into the booth. Raina glanced between Michael and Jordis a few times. Michael could see the wheels spinning behind those gray eyes so much like his own. She was getting the wrong idea about him and Jordis. He would have to set her straight when he got her alone. He didn’t need her speculating to their older sister or, heaven forbid, mom about what was going on between the two lawyers—which was a definite nothing. Okay, maybe parts of him wanted something to be going on between them, but the parts above his waist were determined to keep the lower parts from getting their way.
About the time Michael was getting squeamish under his sister’s perusal, a commotion at the front of the restaurant drew her attention. A group of five young men entered the restaurant. When they passed the table, a khakis-wearing young man with shaggy blond hair and big brown eyes looked at Raina and winked. Michael caught Raina’s reserved smile though she tried to act nonchalant about what had occurred.
“Who’s he?” Michael asked his sister.
Raina flinched, reaching for her drink to cover her reaction.
“Raina?”
“What?” she answered in an irritated voice.
“Who was that guy who winked at you?”
“No one.”
“No one, huh?” Michael took another sip of his beer. “That’s why he keeps looking over here every chance he gets. If he keeps that up, the boy’s going to have a crook in his neck by the time he gets his meal.”
Raina huffed out a breath. “Leave him alone, Michael. It’s just a guy I know.”
“Know from where?”